German unemployment dips to 6.6 percent in June

BERLIN (AP) — A seasonal pickup in job creation has helped push Germany's unemployment rate down to 6.6 percent in June from 6.8 percent the previous month.

The Federal Labor Agency said Thursday that 2.865 million people were registered as unemployed, a drop of 72,000 over the month.

When adjusted for seasonal factors, unemployment fell by 12,000 but the rate was steady at 6.8 percent.

Europe's biggest economy has enjoyed a period of relatively low unemployment in contrast to many of the other European Union countries that use the euro. Spain and Greece for example have unemployment rates above 25 percent.